Wednesday, February 12, 2014

A tale of 7 missing buffaloes!

Talented photo- journalist Santanu Das, who has just published his wonderful book on Udvada. Santanu deserves better recognition and support.
He would love to take on more commissioned work, now that he has quit his day job with the Times of India.
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This appeared in the Asian Age...

All it takes is 7 missing
buffaloes….!

The Lord be praised! Seven stolen buffaloes
of Urban Development Minister, Azam Khan,
were finally located after a massive, night long buffalo hunt which was
launched by Rampur SSP Sadhna Goswami, using the services of a crack team , including sniffer dogs. The
retrieved buffaloes cost three Uttar Pradesh policemen their postings, to say
nothing of their prestige within the force. Their crime? They were on night
patrol duty at the time the buffaloes went missing. We don’t know what the
buffaloes feel about their kidnapping and eventual rescue, but clearly, the
Ministerji is vastly relieved. Obviously, this particular gentleman was very
attached to his buffaloes. So attached, in fact, that he thought nothing of
using state machinery on a priority basis to search for his cattle, keeping
everything else on hold. Five police teams fanned out to conduct raids across
Rampur. Investigators from the district police’s crime cell were also called
in, as the enraged Minister expressed his anguish in no uncertain terms. This
level of police servility towards
political bosses is not restricted to Uttar Pradesh, alone. In Maharashtra, we
are witnessing blatant political manipulation / interference in police
appointments as Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan takes his own sweet time to
name a Police Commissioner. As always,
the voice of citizens will be ignored while political parties fight over what
is possibly the most coveted police appointment in the country.

Which is why Azam Khan’s blatant misuse of
his position has not shocked the rest of India. In Uttar Pradesh, of course,
this form of netagiri has traditionally
been condoned. Uttar Pradesh with its
hopelessly feudal thinking will naturally accept Azam Khan ordering local
police personnel to find his missing buffaloes – or else! Never mind that his
atrocious behaviour draws attention to the apathy displayed by the State
administration towards riot victims still suffering in Muzaffarnagar camps. For
Azam Khan, the lives of those orphaned, starving children are obviously worth
much less than the price of his precious buffaloes. While we keep talking
nonchalantly about the many Indias that co-exist cheek-by-jowl within a radius
of five miles, do we forget the century we are living in? The context? The
crisis? Of course, we do. Azam Khan is
emblematic of this anomaly. He thinks and behaves like a medieval zamindar, focused
on rural concerns that are narrow and selfish in the extreme. How can this man be in charge of urban
development? Does nobody see the irony of his portfolio? And if somebody does,
should he not be removed from this ministry immediately? Does he even know the
meaning – separately and together – of those two words ?

Perhaps, Azam Khan has inadvertently become the face of
Elections 2014. And in Azam Khan’s deplorable conduct, we can read the
terrifying text of the real conflict that faces India today. Simply put, it is
the vast rural-urban divide. The chasm
has grown to an extent that now appears unbridgeable to voters. It is going to
be the dramatic contest between the Chaiwalla and the Latte drinker, isn’t it ?
Between buffaloes and Bentleys. There seems to be no in- between option at this point. Narendra Modi
has shrewdly positioned himself as that Chaiwalla who represents the
majority. While poor Rahul Gandhi struggles to strike a credible balance
between his love for the Italian Cappuccino and his desi obligations. If one can understand that,
one can decode what took place in Rampur. What is scary is the fact that more
people in Uttar Pradesh condone Azam Khan, than condemn him. “It is our way of life in these parts,” they
shrug. And so it is!

In a bizarre development, Aam Aadmi Arvind
Kejriwal shocked admirers by justifying the power of Khap Panchayats by
providing a pseudo-cultural context to them.We are likely to witness many more
such stands getting direct endorsements from politicians as a run up to
Elections 2014. Hardly anybody is talking about development in real terms.
Nobody has made women’s issues central to their political agenda. So far, they
have opted for tokenism and talked around both subjects, gauging (accurately,
perhaps) that these count for little in an election that is about asserting
religious identity above all else. If that makes you uncomfortable, too bad.
So, no amount of ‘zeher ki kheti’
speeches will impress or influence the
voter. The numbers will only kick in from those looking for a leader who
promises everyone a quick fix. A quick fix that comes with an important rider –
Hindutva. Everything else is icing on
the cake - just a way to dress up the
main dish and make it more appetizing. Narendra Modi has sensed the mood. Sonia
Gandhi can call him a ‘Maut ka Saudagar’ a thousand times over. But this
Chaiwalla has cleverly figured Indians don’t give a damn about ‘zeher’ - they
love tea. And Indians also love ‘natak’. If Modi sounds more and more like a Gujarati stage actor performing at Mumbai’s
famous Bhang Wadi in the ‘80s, it is by design. Modi’s campaign is specifically
geared to win over the Lost Indian. The one who’s unable to figure out the better
option - should it be a pricy Latte at a neighbourhood Starbucks or a
cutting chai at a local dukaan? Modi has the answer! It is obvious: the era of
snobby public school lads and Oxbridge intellectuals running the show from
Delhi is finally over.

There’s not much of a difference between Azam
Khan and Narendra Modi, after all. In India, the buffalo always wins.

16 comments:

As far AK is concerned on khaps then it seems he is behaving now more politically correct rather than an activist. He has his roots in Haryana so he knows this khap's Haryana a bit too well. As far as Indian police and politicians nexus is concerned then there is no hidden fact that this nexus is party to many crimes!

Yes this a way of life in UP. Richa Yadav, the niece of Mulayam Singh Yadav had goons & police in uniform rough up a chemist because he did not have the cough syrup she demanded. No action & no follow up by the media despite CCTV footage. We know what happened to Durga Shakti Nagpal. SP goons assault toll booth operators (they are the most vulnerable everywhere) for asking the MLA to pay up.Dhananjay Singh MP has 29 criminal cases with 2 murders & he is free. His wife (a dentist)Jagriti Singh tortured 3 servants & killed one. They are free. She justified her act by saying that the maid servant did not dust properly. UP is a jungle. Such stories coming from there will not surprise anybody. I wonder what Akhilesh Yadav learnt in Military school & University of Sydney ! To obey & follow the footsteps of his father ? Waste of money.

people are too concerned about themselves. They would just look at this incident curse the politics in India and move on. Every one should come together and condemn such misuse of power then only can there be change.

For all his flaws, Modi has won elections talking about development. Yes, he is seen as a mascot of Hindutva but I think a 20 something youngster will vote for Modi because they want development. He talks about issues concerning a modern Indian and even has probable solutions, which he is trying to work out. He has converted Ahmedabad into a city that can rival Pune and may be soon, Bangalore. There is a reason to be hopeful about him.

Amazin work shobhaa.. brilliant.. D way you took a neutral stance at the end was good. D Indians hav been fooled since long ..it doesn't really matter what the future PM is gonna do. Gujarath is like a movies for us, were we feel this is what he is gonna give. and the congress doesn't Have anything against him except the infamous riots, but its not enough a stop a immovable force. Its gonna hit them back. Lets hope our chaiwala puts real milk instead of adulterated tea. hey can U check out my blog and let know how it is..?! Wud b awesome! http://nahushakulkarni.blogspot.in/

Anyway I respect your words...'In India, The Buffalo always wins' India is skthi in the nation ruled by her from the ancients age then how can come buffaloes between them. anyhow you have been tolerate to that buffalo....who is ?

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